Experiences of Language in Migration: Communicating Well-Being in Finland and Germany




Häkkinen, Miira; Mikkilä-Erdmann, Mirjamaija

Publisher SAGE Publications

2024

Adult Education Quarterly

0741-7136

1552-3047

DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1177/07417136241266215(external)

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/07417136241266215(external)

https://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/457446180(external)



This study investigated adult learners’ experiences with the language of their new living environment. Migrants and refugees’ personal goals for language learning in their specific life situations were captured in in-depth interviews conducted as part of ethnographically oriented field studies in Finland and Germany. Interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) was chosen as a structured approach to scrutinizing complex lived experiences. The process reveals common experiences among participants: language contributes to a sensation of getting closer or being pushed away and to balancing active participation in society, and it is a necessity for building personal futures. The findings indicate that language is essentially involved in subjective well-being but also, more fundamentally, in every aspect of existence itself. Therefore, the findings extend the potential implications beyond the two European research contexts.


The authors disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: Data collection in Germany was funded by Emil Öhmann Foundation of the Finnish Academy of Science and Letters (personal travel grant). Data analysis and writing of the manuscript were funded by Finnish Cultural Foundation (two personal grants).


Last updated on 2025-27-01 at 19:28